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10.9 Polar Equations of Conics

What you should learn
Define conics in terms of eccentricity. Write and graph equations of conics in polar form. Use equations of conics in polar form to model real-life problems.

Alternative Definition of Conic

In Sections 10.3 and 10.4, you learned that the rectangular equations of ellipses and hyperbolas take simple forms when the origin lies at their centers. As it happens, there are many important applications of conics in which it is more convenient to use one of the foci as the origin. In this section, you will learn that polar equations of conics take simple forms if one of the foci lies at the pole. To begin, consider the following alternative definition of conic that uses the concept of eccentricity.

Why you should learn it

The orbits of planets and satellites can be modeled with polar equations. For instance, in Exercise 58 on page 798, a polar equation is used to model the orbit of a satellite.

Alternative Definition of Conic

The locus of a point in the plane that moves so that its distance from a fixed point (focus) is in a constant ratio to its distance from a fixed line (directrix) is a conic. The constant ratio is the eccentricity of the conic and is denoted by e. Moreover, the conic is an ellipse if e < 1, a parabola if e 1, and a hyperbola if e > 1. (See Figure 10.77.) In Figure 10.77, note that for each type of conic, the focus is at the pole.
2 2 2

Directrix Q P Q
0

Directrix P F = (0, 0)
0

Directrix Q

P F = (0, 0) Ellipse: 0 < e < 1 PF < 1 PQ FIGURE 10.77

Digital Image 1996 Corbis; Original image courtesy of NASA/Corbis

F = (0, 0) Q

Parabola: e 1 PF 1 PQ

Hyperbola e > 1 PF PF > 1 PQ PQ

Polar Equations of Conics

The benefit of locating a focus of a conic at the pole is that the equation of the conic takes on a simpler form. For a proof of the polar equations of conics, see Proofs in Mathematics on page 808.

Polar Equations of Conics

The graph of a polar equation of the form 1. r ep 1 e cos or 2. r ep 1 e sin

is a conic, where e > 0 is the eccentricity and p is the distance between the focus (pole) and the directrix.

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Equations of the form ep Vertical directrix gcos 1 e cos correspond to conics with a vertical directrix and symmetry with respect to the polar axis. Equations of the form r ep Horizontal directrix gsin 1 e sin correspond to conics with a horizontal directrix and symmetry with respect to the line 2. Moreover, the converse is also truethat is, any conic with a focus at the pole and having a horizontal or vertical directrix can be represented by one of the given equations. r

Example 1

Identifying a Conic from Its Equation

15 . 3 2 cos

Identify the type of conic represented by the equation r

Algebraic Solution
To identify the type of conic, rewrite the equation in the form r ep1 e cos . 15 r Write original equation. 3 2 cos 5 1 23 cos
2 3

Graphical Solution
You can start sketching the graph by plotting points from 0 to . Because the equation is of the form r gcos , the graph of r is symmetric with respect to the polar axis. So, you can complete the sketch, as shown in Figure 10.78. From this, you can conclude that the graph is an ellipse.

Divide numerator and denominator by 3.

r=

Because e is an ellipse.

< 1, you can conclude that the graph

(3, )
3 6

15 3 2 cos (15, 0)
0

9 12

18 21

Now try Exercise 11.

Additional Example Identify the conic and sketch its graph. 4 r 2 2 sin Solution Parabola
2

FIGURE

10.78

For the ellipse in Figure 10.78, the major axis is horizontal and the vertices lie at 15, 0 and 3, . So, the length of the major axis is 2a 18. To find the length of the minor axis, you can use the equations e ca and b 2 a 2 c 2 to conclude that b2 a 2 c 2 a 2 ea2 a 21 e 2.
Ellipse
2

1 2

4 5

Because e you have b 2 921 2 3 45, which implies that b 45 35. So, the length of the minor axis is 2b 65. A similar analysis for hyperbolas yields b2 c 2 a 2
2 3,

ea2 a 2 a 2e 2 1.
Hyperbola

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Example 2

Sketching a Conic from Its Polar Equation

32 and sketch its graph. 3 5 sin

Identify the conic r

2

Solution
Dividing the numerator and denominator by 3, you have r 323 . 1 53 sin

16, 3 2

( 4, 2)
0 4 8

Because e 5 3 > 1, the graph is a hyperbola. The transverse axis of the hyperbola lies on the line 2, and the vertices occur at 4, 2 and 16, 32. Because the length of the transverse axis is 12, you can see that a 6. To find b, write b 2 a 2e 2 1 6 2

r=
FIGURE

32 3 + 5 sin

5 3

1 64.

10.79

So, b 8. Finally, you can use a and b to determine that the asymptotes of the hyperbola are y 10 3 4 x. The graph is shown in Figure 10.79. Now try Exercise 19.

Te c h n o l o g y
Use a graphing utility set in polar mode to verify the four orientations shown at the right. Remember that e must be positive, but p can be positive or negative.

In the next example, you are asked to find a polar equation of a specified conic. To do this, let p be the distance between the pole and the directrix. 1. Horizontal directrix above the pole: 2. Horizontal directrix below the pole: r r 1 1 1 1 ep e sin ep e sin ep e cos ep e cos

3. Vertical directrix to the right of the pole: r 4. Vertical directrix to the left of the pole: r

Example 3
2

Finding the Polar Equation of a Conic

Find the polar equation of the parabola whose focus is the pole and whose directrix is the line y 3.

Directrix: y=3 (0, 0)

0 1 2 3 4

Solution
From Figure 10.80, you can see that the directrix is horizontal and above the pole, so you can choose an equation of the form r
r= 3 1 + sin

ep . 1 e sin

FIGURE

10.80

Moreover, because the eccentricity of a parabola is e 1 and the distance between the pole and the directrix is p 3, you have the equation 3 r . 1 sin Now try Exercise 33.

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Activities 1. Identify the conic and sketch its graph. 4 r 3 2 cos Answer: Ellipse
2

Applications
Keplers Laws (listed below), named after the German astronomer Johannes Kepler (15711630), can be used to describe the orbits of the planets about the sun. 1. Each planet moves in an elliptical orbit with the sun at one focus. 2. A ray from the sun to the planet sweeps out equal areas of the ellipse in equal times. 3. The square of the period (the time it takes for a planet to orbit the sun) is proportional to the cube of the mean distance between the planet and the sun. Although Kepler simply stated these laws on the basis of observation, they were later validated by Isaac Newton (16421727). In fact, Newton was able to show that each law can be deduced from a set of universal laws of motion and gravitation that govern the movement of all heavenly bodies, including comets and satellites. This is illustrated in the next example, which involves the comet named after the English mathematician and physicist Edmund Halley (16561742). If you use Earth as a reference with a period of 1 year and a distance of 1 astronomical unit (an astronomical unit is defined as the mean distance between Earth and the sun, or about 93 million miles), the proportionality constant in Keplers third law is 1. For example, because Mars has a mean distance to the sun of d 1.524 astronomical units, its period P is given by d 3 P 2. So, the period of Mars is P 1.88 years.

2. Find a polar equation of the parabola with focus at the pole and directrix y 2. 2 Answer: r 1 sin

Example 4

Halleys Comet

Sun 2

Earth Halleys comet

Halleys comet has an elliptical orbit with an eccentricity of e 0.967. The length of the major axis of the orbit is approximately 35.88 astronomical units. Find a polar equation for the orbit. How close does Halleys comet come to the sun?

Solution
Using a vertical axis, as shown in Figure 10.81, choose an equation of the form r ep1 e sin . Because the vertices of the ellipse occur when 2 and 32, you can determine the length of the major axis to be the sum of the r-values of the vertices. That is, 0.967p 0.967p 2a 29.79p 35.88. 1 0.967 1 0.967 So, p 1.204 and ep 0.9671.204 1.164. Using this value of ep in the equation, you have 1.164 r 1 0.967 sin where r is measured in astronomical units. To find the closest point to the sun (the focus), substitute 2 in this equation to obtain

3 2
FIGURE

1.164 0.59 astronomical unit 55,000,000 miles. 1 0.967 sin2 Now try Exercise 57.

10.81

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10.9 Exercises
VOCABULARY CHECK:
In Exercises 13, fill in the blanks. 1. The locus of a point in the plane that moves so that its distance from a fixed point (focus) is in a constant ratio to its distance from a fixed line (directrix) is a ________. 2. The constant ratio is the ________ of the conic and is denoted by ________. 3. An equation of the form r ep has a ________ directrix to the ________ of the pole. 1 e cos (c) e > 1 (iii) ellipse

4. Match the conic with its eccentricity. (a) e < 1 (i) parabola (b) e 1 (ii) hyperbola

PREREQUISITE SKILLS REVIEW: Practice and review algebra skills needed for this section at www.Eduspace.com.
In Exercises 14, write the polar equation of the conic for e 1, e 0.5, and e 1.5. Identify the conic for each equation. Verify your answers with a graphing utility. 4e 1. r 1 e cos 4e 3. r 1 e sin 4e 2. r 1 e cos 4e 4. r 1 e sin 5. r 7. r 9. r 2 1 cos 3 1 2 sin 4 2 cos 6. r 8. r 10. r 3 2 cos 2 1 sin 4 1 3 sin

In Exercises 1124, identify the conic and sketch its graph. In Exercises 510, match the polar equation with its graph. [The graphs are labeled (a), (b), (c), (d), (e), and (f).] (a)
2

11. r 13. r

(b)

2 1 cos 5 1 sin 2 2 cos 6 2 sin 3 2 4 sin 3 2 6 cos 4 2 cos

12. r 14. r 16. r 18. r 20. r 22. r 24. r

3 1 sin 6 1 cos 3 3 sin 9 3 2 cos 5 1 2 cos 3 2 6 sin 2 2 3 sin

4 2 0

15. r 17. r

(c)

(d)

19. r 21. r

0 2 4 0 2

23. r

(e)

(f)

In Exercises 2528, use a graphing utility to graph the polar equation. Identify the graph. 25. r
0

1 1 sin 3 4 2 cos

26. r 28. r

5 2 4 sin 4 1 2 cos

2 0 2 4

27. r

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Topics in Analytic Geometry 50. Planetary Motion Use the result of Exercise 49 to show that the minimum distance ( perihelion distance) from the sun to the planet is r a1 e and the maximum distance (aphelion distance) is r a1 e. Planetary Motion In Exercises 5156, use the results of Exercises 49 and 50 to find the polar equation of the planets orbit and the perihelion and aphelion distances. 51. Earth (See Exercise 20.) 52. Saturn 53. Venus 54. Mercury 55. Mars 56. Jupiter a 95.956 106 miles, e 0.0167 a 1.427 109 kilometers, e 0.0542 a 108.209 106 kilometers, e 0.0068 a 35.98 106 miles, e 0.2056 a 141.63 106 miles, e 0.0934 a 778.41 106 kilometers, e 0.0484

In Exercises 2932, use a graphing utility to graph the rotated conic. 29. r 30. r 31. r 32. r 2 1 cos 4 3 3 sin 3 6 2 sin 6 5 1 2 cos 23 (See Exercise 11.) (See Exercise 16.) (See Exercise 17.)

In Exercises 3348, find a polar equation of the conic with its focus at the pole. Conic 33. Parabola 34. Parabola 35. Ellipse 36. Ellipse 37. Hyperbola 38. Hyperbola Conic 39. Parabola 40. Parabola 41. Parabola 42. Parabola 43. Ellipse 44. Ellipse 45. Ellipse 46. Hyperbola 47. Hyperbola 48. Hyperbola Eccentricity e1 e1 e1 2 e e
3 4 3 2

Directrix x 1 y 2 y1 y 3 x1 x 1

57. Astronomy The comet Encke has an elliptical orbit with an eccentricity of e 0.847. The length of the major axis of the orbit is approximately 4.42 astronomical units. Find a polar equation for the orbit. How close does the comet come to the sun?

e2 Vertex or Vertices

Model It
58. Satellite Tracking A satellite in a 100-mile-high circular orbit around Earth has a velocity of approximately 17,500 miles per hour. If this velocity is multiplied by 2, the satellite will have the minimum velocity necessary to escape Earths gravity and it will follow a parabolic path with the center of Earth as the focus (see figure). Circular orbit 4100 miles
0

1, 2 6, 0 5, 10, 2 2, 0, 10, 2, 2, 4, 32 20, 0, 4, 2, 0, 8, 0 1, 32, 9, 32 4, 2, 1, 2

Parabolic path

49. Planetary Motion The planets travel in elliptical orbits with the sun at one focus. Assume that the focus is at the pole, the major axis lies on the polar axis, and the length of the major axis is 2a (see figure). Show that the polar equation of the orbit is r a1 e21 e cos where e is the eccentricity.
2

Not drawn to scale

(a) Find a polar equation of the parabolic path of the satellite (assume the radius of Earth is 4000 miles). (b) Use a graphing utility to graph the equation you found in part (a).

Planet r Sun

(c) Find the distance between the surface of the Earth and the satellite when 30. (d) Find the distance between the surface of Earth and the satellite when 60.

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Synthesis
True or False? In Exercises 5961, determine whether the statement is true or false. Justify your answer. 59. For a given value of e > 1 over the interval 0 to 2, the graph of ex r 1 e cos is the same as the graph of r e x . 1 e cos

(a) Identify the conic without graphing the equation. (b) Without graphing the following polar equations, describe how each differs from the given polar equation. r1 4 , 1 0.4 cos r2 4 1 0.4 sin

(c) Use a graphing utility to verify your results in part (b). 72. Exploration r The equation

ep 1 e sin

60. The graph of r 4 3 3 sin

is the equation of an ellipse with e < 1. What happens to the lengths of both the major axis and the minor axis when the value of e remains fixed and the value of p changes? Use an example to explain your reasoning.

Skills Review
In Exercises 7378, solve the trigonometric equation. 73. 43 tan 3 1 75. 12 sin2 9 77. 2 cot x 5 cos 74. 6 cos x 2 1 76. 9 csc2 x 10 2 78. 2 sec 2 csc

has a horizontal directrix above the pole. 61. The conic represented by the following equation is an ellipse. r2 16 9 4 cos

62. Writing In your own words, define the term eccentricity and explain how it can be used to classify conics. 63. Show that the polar equation of the ellipse x2 y2 1 is a 2 b2 r2 b2 . 1 e 2 cos 2

In Exercises 7982, find the exact value of the trigonometric function given that u and v are in Quadrant IV and sin u 3 5 and cos v 1/2. 79. cosu v 81. cosu v 80. sinu v 82. sinu v

64. Show that the polar equation of the hyperbola x2 y2 2 1 is 2 a b b2 . r2 1 e 2 cos 2

In Exercises 83 and 84, find the exact values of sin 2u, cos 2u, and tan 2u using the double-angle formulas. 4 < u < 83. sin u , 5 2 84. tan u 3, 3 < u < 2 2

In Exercises 6570, use the results of Exercises 63 and 64 to write the polar form of the equation of the conic. 65. 67. x2 y2 1 169 144 x2 y2 1 9 16 Vertices: 70. Ellipse Vertices: 71. Exploration r 66. 68. x2 y2 1 25 16 x2 y2 1 36 4

In Exercises 8588, find a formula for an for the arithmetic sequence.

1 85. a1 0, d 4

86. a1 13, d 3 88. a1 5, a4 9.5

69. Hyperbola

One focus: 5, 2

87. a3 27, a8 72

4, 2, 4, 2 5, 0, 5,

One focus: 4, 0

In Exercises 8992, evaluate the expression. Do not use a calculator. 89. 91.
12C9 10 P3

90. 92.

18C16 29 P2

Consider the polar equation

4 . 1 0.4 cos